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August 2011 Archives

"We're just ready to get out there and see what we're made of... For us to go in [to USC] this year and knock the head off the snake is going to be so good."

Senior Brandon Kirksey's words pretty much sum up what the entire Gopher roster is thinking right now -- we all know that "Saturday's Coming," but it needs to get here already! Only three days to go in our 10-day countdown, and the excitement is building among players, coaches and staff -- they're ready to stop talking and let their play on the field say it all.

Check back again tomorrow when we look at Day 2 in the countdown -- we'll hear from the who could have a bigger impact on Saturday's outcome than anyone else. Saturday's Coming!

Fans excited for the Gopher Football season to begin should be able to get a huge fix in the days leading up to Saturday's season-opener at USC.

Gopher Football with Jerry Kill premieres at 5 p.m. CT on FSN today (Wednesday). The show will re-air again tonight at 10:30 p.m. CT on FSN. Gopher Football with Jerry Kill will air throughout the rest of the week, as well. Here's a look at times you can catch the coach's television show on FSN or BTN:

In addition to Gopher Football with Jerry Kill, all four Gopher Undercover episodes will be airing Friday on BTN from 11 a.m. through 1 p.m. That means Gopher Football will dominate the BTN from 10:30 .m. through 1 p.m. Friday.

Secondary coach Jay Sawvel has been with head coach Jerry
Kill for 10 years. Sawvel's responsibility has been to coach the defensive
backs for that entire decade. Kill trusts him, like he trusts all his assistant
coaches.

But with the Gophers, Kill has an extra security blanket
when it comes to the defensive backs - at least for this season anyway. Kill, Sawvel
and defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys have been the beneficiaries of an NCAA
decision to grant safety Kim Royston a sixth year of eligibility.

Kill has often mentioned that Royston will be one of the
lynchpins of the defense. Due to his age and experience, the 50-year-old head coach
has also joked that the 24-year-old Royston is "close to my age." But most
helpful is Royston's maturity, experience and willingness to help his teammates.

"Kim, he's
older, he's been in it for six years, he's had the ups and downs, all the things
kids do as young people, he's already done and understands that," Kill said. "(He)
is ... kind of like a coach, so to speak, on the field. We need him to stay healthy
and we need him to play well. But there's no question that he's an important
cog in what we do, certainly the back end."

It's interesting
that Kill touts him as being like a coach on the field, because Royston has coach-speak
down. The sixth-year senior sounded like he was channeling Kill as he met with
the media following the head coach's press conference Tuesday afternoon.

"I'm not going
to put any numbers to it, wins and losses," Royston said when asked about expectations
for this year's team. "But I think we expect to play hard, play physical and
play to win every game. If we do that, the rest will take care of itself."

Claeys hopes what Royston brings to the table will rub off
on his teammates, not only this season but in the future.

"Kim has
done a great job of getting them on the straight and narrow," Claeys said.
"That position takes a lot of experience, because they're the quarterbacks
back there. They've got to get everybody lined up and make sure they
communicate. His age and maturity is a huge plus. Hopefully the other kids will
learn from him, so when he's done playing they can continue those same things."

Kill told me recently
that he may not name captains until the end of the season, saying he just didn't
know enough about the team and the individuals on the team just yet. But
virtually every time Kill is asked about leadership, Royston's name comes up.
Whether it's tomorrow or at the end of the season, my money is on Royston to be
named a captain when Kill pulls the trigger on that decision.

"As far as
somebody jumping out, certainly Kim has done some good things,"
Kill said. "I would tell you that through the summer, I think Royston did a
great job."

Royston's broken
leg in the spring of 2010, the questions about his possible return for the 2010
season and his sixth year of eligibility being granted are all well-documented.
After having gone through all of that, Royston just can't wait to get back out
the field in maroon and gold.

"It's been a
long time coming ... a lot of rehab, a lot of ups and downs," Royston said. "But
after having a year off, I'm definitely ready to get back out there and stick
my nose into some stuff."

He'll get his
chance to do just that Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Click the video below to see more of Kim's comments during Tuesday's press conference.

Today was the last full day at camp. We started the day off by traveling to Itasca State Park for a hilly long run and afterwards we visited the headwaters of the Mississippi. When we got back from running, the nice weather we had all week moved out and it rained on and off the rest of the night. This ended the badmitten tournament without crowning a champion for the second straight year.

The afternoon turned into playing dominos and watching movies. The team was in for a treat for supper, Wayne fried up a meal of fish he had caught this year and Bunch made some delicious desserts to go with it. This was my favorite meal of camp.

After supper, the team went into Park Rapids for an evening of bowling. After bowling the team stopped at the local DQ and overwhelmed the staff for a few ice cream cones, then it was back to the cabins to start the long process of cleaning up after a week of making messes. The freshman got the privilege of cleaning out and vacuuming the vans for everyone.

The team looks pretty tired after an intense week of training so I believe it's gonna be an early night tonight. Thanks to everyone for an awesome week of camp!

The clock is ticking down -- four days from now Gopher Football will finally open their season in Los Angeles agains the USC Trojans!

Today in the countdown, we hear from the man behind the program -- head coach Jerry Kill. Coach Kill held his first weekly in-season press conference today to talk about the USC game. A lot was said (for even more coverage, visit our Gopher Football Blog) but one little tidbit stood out to us. Saturday will be the first time that these Gophers can truly put Coach Kill's favorite saying ("I hear what you say, and trust what you do) into practice.

Only four days left in the countdown! Check back tomorrow for Number Three. Saturday's Coming!

Head coach Jerry Kill says there's an art to scheduling -- especially
when you're building a program.

If Coach Kill had his way, the Gophers would not be opening
the season at the University of Southern California this week. In the first
game of his first season, Kill said he would much rather be playing at TCF Bank
Stadium.

"No," Kill said
when asked if he would have scheduled things the way they will play out this
week. "I'm very honest. We'd be playing at home. You asked. I'm being straight.
I don't like playing the first game (against a) BCS (team). I want to play at
home.There's a whole lot of difference
between playing at home and going on the road, plus going to USC and the time
difference, the whole ball of wax."

But there aren't
going to be any excuses either.

"But it is what it
is, so we'll bow up and we'll be excited and we'll go out and do it," Kill said
of this Saturday's game with the Trojans. "It is what it is. We'll have them
ready to go. I'm not worried about it.I'm looking forward to it.I
expect any time we go to a game, we go to win.I'm a competitor, and that's how I'm going to approach every game."

Kill said
scheduling philosophies in the Big Ten will probably be changing drastically
over the next few years, with the addition of a nine-game conference schedule
coming in 2017.

"I think everybody
in the Big Ten is going to have to solve that problem," Kill said. "I can't
give you that answer right now because I'm worried about playing USC.But everybody is going to have to look at that
because we're going to an extra conference game now, and then we're going to
have three (non-conference) games, and you'd better win those three.There's going to be a whole change in the Big
Ten scheduling because of what's going to happen.So I think all our coaches from the Big Ten
are going to have to look at what you're going to do because you'd better be
ready for the Big Ten (schedule)."

Head coach Jerry Kill's message may not be quite as ominous as the Party's oft-used phrase in Orwell's novel. But he has made it clear to his team and his staff that everyone's behavior is up for evaluation, on the field and off.

Kill talked with the media in his weekly press conference for nearly 30 minutes Tuesday. One of the items that piqued the
interest of many in the room was his mention of videotaping the sidelines on
game day.

Kill believes you can learn a lot about people when you see
how they react to different situations. For that reason, he wants to see what's
going on behind him on the sideline on Saturdays. When most coaches watch game
film, they only watch what's taking place between the white lines. Kill is just
as interested in what takes place outside them.

"I might be the
only coach in America that videos the sideline," Kill said. "I want to see how
people handle themselves.I want to see
who's throwing that helmet down, I want to see who's losing their cool.I evaluate the coaches (too) ... everybody is
accountable on game day."

Kill started in on the topic when he was talking about
facing adversity. He believes the only
way to truly test someone's mettle to see how they react to adversity. Kill has
tried to create as much adversity as he can in practice. But he knows there is
no substitute for game day to see how a team reacts to it.

"Maybe you're down
two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, are you going to battle back or are you
going to lay down and quit, or maybe you lose a good player with an injury,"
Kill said. "Who's going to step up and play?Are we going to sit around and say, gosh darn, we lost so and so?The next guy has got to step up.Maybe something happens off the field.Maybe losing two straight games, maybe
getting your tail end kicked, whatever that may be."

Kill also mentioned
adversity when asked if leaders had stepped forward on the team yet.

"I don't judge anybody until their back is against the wall," Kill said. "We've had six months and there hasn't been any adversity. I judge people in adverse conditions. Do they turn on each other, do they step up? We'll find out how we are through this year because there will be good times, there will be tough times, there will be bad times. How are we going to deal with it? That's how you develop leadership."

What a great day 4 at preseason camp here in lovely Ely, Minnesota! The days of running, relaxing, and team bonding are flying by and will be drawing to a close after a full day of activities tomorrow. Today turned out to be a gorgeous day here with plenty of sunshine and good times. Not much was planned for the team today outside of a recovery run between workout days. We filled our time instead with plenty of canoeing, sailing, sunbathing, reading, and bananagrams!

The evening wrapped up with a team trip into town for Dairy Queen, a traditional night of soft-serve ice cream that continues year after year. Along the way, our car learned a great deal about Coach Wilson's taste in music. We found in his CD player some Bruno Mars, plenty of Michael Jackson, Black Eyed Peas, and best of all the olympic theme song. Now we all know what Coach Wilson likes to jam out to on his road trips!

After the team was pretty well sugared-up from all sorts of Blizzard concoctions, we finished the night with an impromptu concert put on in the mess hall by some teammates, followed up by a memorable dance party. The team is really coming together as a family and the freshmen already fit right in! The Gopher Women's Cross Country team definitely has a special bond this year!

The Gopher Football Webisode series comes to a close as we are less than one week away from the season-opener at USC on Saturday.

I'd like to personally thank 3 Penny Films for being so incredible to work with. Their team was great. I don't know if we'll be able to work together with them again in the future. But I would welcome that opportunity. They did a great job and I think I speak for the football staff with those sentiments as well.

This final webisode focuses on the team getting through camp with humor and preparation for Saturday's game at USC. Please click the player below to view the webisode. Don't forget to bookmark the Gopher Football Blog for all your Gopher news throughout the season. Tomorrow will be a big day on the blog, as Coach Kill will hold his weekly press conference prior to the USC game.

It was another early start to the day with the four University vans leaving for the twenty minute drive to the ATV trails at 8:00. It was a nice, relaxing run ranging between 50 to 60 minutes for most of the team. Everyone was a little sore form the workout the day before, and preparing for the long run at Itasca State Park tomorrow. The run was proceeded by strides and returning back to Belle Shores Resort.Followed by a refreshing lake shower, it was a lazy morning with most athletes returning to their cabins to relax before lunch.

Bunch's amazing turkey sandwiches and sweet potato surprise filled everyone's bellies for lunch.The food seemed to bring back energy to the team with more activities taking place after lunch.Minnow races were a big hit of the afternoon with all the athletes and coaches encouraging their minnows down two parallel gutters.Some of the minnow's names were Chuck Norris, Salty Sulkin, Nevis Nightmare, Disappointing but Consistent, Nemo, Tim, and Never-Ending Daydream.Freshman Alex Brend came out as the overall champion leading his minnow, Roxxxy, to five wins.The races were followed by delicious popsicles.

Bocce Ball, badminton, football, swimming, board games, and tanning occurred in the afternoon.While most people were having a great time, Coach Chris Rombough decided he would be anti-social and take a three hour nap missing team bonding time and the second practice of the day....naughty naughty.

At 4:30 the team met for a short and relaxed second run of the day.Hurdle mobility drills and a medicine ball routine followed.Another lake shower and tanning session followed the run.A wonderful dinner of spaghetti, salad, and bread was served around 6:30.Puzzles and relaxing ended the night of another day at CC camp.

Only five days left in our countdown to Gopher Football's season opener against the USC Trojans at the LA Coliseum. Today, we look at the game from a fan's point of view -- one very lucky fan, in fact.

U of M junior and three-year student season ticket holder Rachel Kroska was just minding her own business at work a couple of weeks ago when she received a call from the Gopher marketing department -- as the first student to reserve her football tickets, she had won a trip to travel with the team to Los Angeles for the USC game!

Watch the video for more of Rachel's reaction to this news, but let's just say that she was... "Excited," to say the least.

Come back tomorrow when Coach Kill makes his first appearance on our countdown. Only five days left to go!

Today was everyone's favorite day at camp; tempo run day. We drove out to Park Rapids and ran our tempo run back to Belle Shores. Coach Rombough marked out the miles for us so we could keep track of our paces. Overall it was a good workout. Because we all ran hard in the morning, everyone just laid low for the rest of the day until the afternoon run.

For the afternoon practice, the freshman reluctantly ran in the water. Everyone else ran on the roads outside Belle Shores. When we got back, Plaz set up kayak races for the whole team. In the third place match, which my team was too good for, Larz, (Andrew Larsen) drew first blood after getting nailed in the head with a paddle by Coach Rombough. In the championship race, I left Hassan in my wake when I handed off to Skaret. But Drew was too strong and he overpowered Skaret for the victory. Soon after the race, I beat Larz in badminton again, maintaining my crown as best from Illinois. Too bad that makes me second worse on the team.

At night time we had our team bonfire. Every year the freshman have to stand up and sing their high school fight song. I am convinced that half of them just made it up and sang the Minnesota rouser with a couple different words. Alez Brend just read the words off his phone and it made no sense. By the end of the fire, everyone was exhausted from the tempo run and kayak races so we fell asleep easily.

Ely, what a glorious place! Today was an adventured filled day with the first "workout" of camp and amazing food to fuel our bodies.

We drove into town today to do our progressive run around a four mile lake which went extremely well for the whole team. The progressive is just gradually picking up the pace every 10 minutes three times. It was awesome to see people improve from past years and really just focus on themselves and what they needed to do. The freshmen seemed to have a great first progressive run experiences! One down, about a million to go!

Coming back from the workout we were starving. Not to worry though because camp Ely has the best cooks in the WORLD!!!!! No joke, if i could have camp food for the rest of my life well, I would be one happy Camper :) Nina and the rest of the cooks here at Ely really go out of their way to make sure we're getting awesome food to fuel our bodies and that taste absolutely amazing!

After filling my belly with deliciousness I took a little nap and by little I mean two hour nap. After waking up I decided to hit up the kayaks and take a stroll around the lake, which is absolutely majestic by the way. We then ended the day with a campfire and grilling out for dinner. I'm currently in the mess hall working on this blog but I'm almost positive that a mad dance party is bound to break out any minute now. Would love to share more but I should probably go stretch so I don't pull anything dancing... yes it gets that intense!

For the 10 days before Golden Gopher Football opens the 2011
season against the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Sept. 3,
GopherSports.com will feature a new video vignette highlighting the
matchup between these two storied programs.

With six days remaining, we look back at a more recent highlight from the game between these two teams last fall at TCF Bank Stadium. Down 13-7 late in the third period on third and long, Da'Jon McKnight made a spectacular catch on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Adam Weber to put the Gophers in front 14-13 temporarily (the Gophers eventually fell 32-21).

"We were down, and the linebacker kept coming on and off the field," recalls McKnight. "I had a small DB on me, and [Weber] said hike. I ran my go route... I reached out with my big hands and had the ball in my hand, and I scored."

Watch the video to see how excited Da'Jon is to make another highlight-reel catch this Saturday, and check back on Monday for Number 5 in our countdown!

Today is the last day before the first official practice of game week, so today's entry wraps up the 2011 Preseason Camp Blog. But never fear, come Monday (or more likely Tuesday) this blog will morph into the Golden Gopher Football blog. You can check that blog for all your Golden Gopher Football happenings, complete with behind-the-scenes photos, video and insight.

The Gophers had yesterday off and will have today off as well. Coach Kill made the rounds with a couple local radio stations (WCCO and KFAN) at the Minnesota State Fair this morning. He had running back Duane Bennett, quarterback MarQueis Gray and defensive back Kim Royston with him for some of that time as well.

For the meet of today's blog we wrap up our position previews. Last, but certainly not least (hey, the head coach works with the kickers himself), is a look at the specialists.

When Jerry Kill became the head coach at the University of
Minnesota, one of the first things he mentioned as needing improvement was the
kicking game and specifically in the area of punting. In fact, the new head man
said he was personally going to oversee the kickers and punters.

With just one week remaining until the 2011 season kicks
off, Kill has lived up to his word. He is on the field early every day working
with the punters and kickers. He often stays after practice talking to or
working with them. He even holds position-group meetings with them, much like
the running backs coach does with those players.

While Kill has personally overseen the development of the
kickers and punters, secondary coach Jay Sawvel also holds the title of Special
Teams Coordinator and has the responsibility for all the special teams units.

We won't know what the results will be until they see live
action in games. But Sawvel thinks the punters have done a nice job through
camp.

""Dan (Orseske) is a good punter. (David) Schwerman's a good
punter," Sawvel said. "We've got guys who can punt the ball. What you've got to
do is get them to where they feel comfortable. That's protection, that's
getting people down the field coverage-wise."

But just the ability of a punter to kick the ball a country
mile doesn't ensure good punting. Sawvel said the entire unit has to function
well.

"You've got to be good in all the moving parts," Sawvel
said. "It's not just about the punter. There are so many other things that go
with it. That's always a work in progress. We're continuing that each and every
day. It's improving. But it's obviously a major area of need. That was one of
our first things we felt we needed to address as a team. You can't be 120th
out of 120 in net punting and have a successful football team."

Meanwhile, the placekicking game seems to be in good hands
right now as well. Transfer Chris Hawthorne comes to Minnesota from North
Carolina State. But he has battled with walk-on Jordan Wettstein throughout
camp.

Sawvel had many positive things to say about that duo.

"(The kickers) have had a good camp," he said. "They've been
accurate on field goals, had good timing on field goals. We feel good about the
fact that we can put them in a game situation and they'll be ready. Both of our
guys who are kicking, for the most part, have done very well. Kickoffs have
been in good locations and had good distance. Right now, we're optimistic that
kicker-wise, we're going to be pretty solid."

Of course, the timing Sawvel mentioned on field goals and
point-after-touchdowns wouldn't happen without the long snapper and the holder.
Jake Filkins returns after gaining good experience as a long snapper last
season. Red-shirt freshman Dave Ramlet has also had a nice camp at that
position. Backup quarterback Adam Lueck should once again be the holder, after
"holding" down that role in 2010.

One area the Gophers shouldn't need to worry about when it comes to special teams is the return game. Senior cornerback Troy Stoudermire has been one of the most prolific kick returners in the nation for the past few years. In fact, he has a chance to finish his Gopher career with a couple NCAA records, if everything falls into place correctly. Stoudermire has also been working on returning punts, along with a number of his teammates.

Day three of Cross Country Camp began with an early wake up to a brisk temperature of 47 degrees!Everyone had warm clothing on when we met up for our morning run.It was a shock to everyone's system to wake up to such cool temps, but in a few months we will be begging for 47 degrees.After a quick meeting we hopped into the mini vans and headed to the Karmel Forest/ATV, but before we reached our running destination we passed through "The Biggest Little Town in the World" Emmaville.Everyone went on an easy run through the rock and sand filled trails of the ATV trails and followed it up with a couple of strides.

Took the minivan back with Coach Rombough and had to survive through one Carrie Underwood hit after another.When we arrived back at the Belle Shores Resort everyone started wackin the shuttlecocks around for the beginning of the Badminton Tournament.From about 10:30AM until dusk there was always a game going on.Notable performances included the unstoppable duo of the masseuse Greg and Freshmen Aaron Bartnik extending their undefeated winning streak to 13 games, Coach Rombough emulsifying a defenseless butterfly after a missed point, and Erik "Trudy" Trudeson's unforeseen upset of Captain Hassan Mead followed by and elimination dive off the pier.

There were other activities besides badminton including a return to the bridge for more diving, a delicious lunch from Bunch, tanning... and burning, a second run for the upperclassmen, and Coach Plaz demonstrating his angling skills with Captain Mead and Bobby Nicolls.After a great taco dinner from Bunch a group of guys went into a cabin for the viewing of "Inglorious Basterds", while others played the Domino game Mexican Train.Everyone got together one more time to have a bowl of ice cream before calling it a day.

Today was an excellent day in the Northwoods for our team. We had an easy recovery run in the morning. Then the rest of the day was filled with Ely activities. Some people spent the afternoon soaking up the sun on the docks. There were a few groups that went canoeing, and some of our teammates even went rock-climbing.

The freshmen had meetings with either the captains or the coaches for most of the day. They have been learning the ropes of Minnesota Cross Country and are quickly assimilating into the team. They were not shy about busting their moves in the team dance party that broke out in the mess hall last night.

Coach Bingle, our head track coach, came up to Ely with his family today to visit us at camp. His daughters even provided some great after-dinner entertainment by singing some Justin Bieber jams. We also enjoyed the annual performance of "Shoop" by Coach Hesser. It has become a great Ely tradition, and this year's show did not disappoint!

For the final 10 days before Golden Gopher Football opens the 2011
season against the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Sept. 3,
GopherSports.com will feature a new video vignette highlighting the
matchup between these two storied programs.

Ed Olson Sr.'s sons Ed Jr. and Tommy have already done a lot to follow in their father's footsteps; both chose to attend the University of Minnesota and play offensive line for the Gophers. Interestingly enough, the Olson brothers will bridge another generation gap on Sept. 3 when they step on the field at the LA Coliseum to take on the USC Trojans -- Olson Sr.'s 1980 Gopher team was also the last one to play at the Coliseum.

Exactly one week to go -- that's Day 7 in our Countdown to USC. Check back tomorrow for number 6 on our list. Saturday's Coming!

After great nights worth of sleep, my day began bright and
early at 7 am. With a few other freshmen, I headed over to Cabin 1 to fuel up
with a light breakfast before our run. Once my stomach was happily filled up
with a banana and cereal, we headed back to our cabin to continue the difficult
process of waking up. At 8am, the team met outside for our run. Coach Rombough
was a tad late, as he had woken up at 8:01. Hopefully tomorrow Rombough will
have gotten enough beauty sleep, and wake up on time.

Once we had all piled into the mini-vans, we embarked on a
short drive to the "Q" loop for our run. The weather was great for running with
a clear sky, and cool temps. It was great to get out on the dirt road's and go
over a few hills. When we were done with our run, we
hopped back in the vans and drove back to Belle Shores. By the time we got back
to camp, we had noticed that Greg (our massage therapist) had arrived. He
received a warm and enthusiastic welcome by all members of the team. Even more
important, Greg arrived with the flag, which Coach Rombough had unfortunately
left back in the locker room.

Soon enough, it was already time for lunch. On the menu
today were sandwiches and sloppy joes. After lunch we had free time until our
second workout at 4:30. Many members of the team filled this time with the
usual horseshoes, swimming, napping, and playing some rousing games of catch.
At 4:30 the veterans of the team went out for another run. Meanwhile, the
freshman stayed back for a few drills and some intense aqua-jogging. Plaz showed all the young guys how it
was done during the jogging, and Alex Brend had quite the kick in kayak races.

Now that the workouts were done for the day, it was time for
the start of a dynasty in badminton by Greg and Aaron Bartnik. The super duo of
Greg and Bartnik impressively faced eight different teams, and defeated all of
them. With the net up, excitement for the badminton tournament is in the air.
Next, it was yet another delicious dinner by Bunch. Stuffed peppers, potatoes,
beans, rice, and salad was enjoyed by everyone.

After dinner, the night developed into some serious relaxing
time and even more badminton. Some of the older guys started a strategic game
of Risk. Once the sun started to slip away, it was easy to see the sunburn some
of the guys had acquired.Coach Rombough
looks like he could use a healthy dose of sunscreen tomorrow.Before long, it was time to hit the
sack and rest up for tomorrow. Another great day being a gopher!

Seven hours the women's cross country team has been in the great northern town of Ely, Minnesota, and we have already experienced our fair share of adventures. For the first time, we all made the five-hour drive together on a bus at full-capacity, seating our 56 team members as opposed to the 15 passenger vans we've used in the past. Already we have gotten to know our fantastic freshmen who sang karaoke for the team on the ride. This helped us put the names to the faces, and also clued us in on who possesses promising music abilities.

After finishing our first workout of the year at the local park, we closed with our traditional team cheer--the first of many to come for this 2011 squad. Everyone is in high spirits and ready for the season! We continued on to be further spoiled by enjoying the culinary masterpieces of Camp Voyager, eating our first scrumptious team dinner of the week.

Though Ely is a peaceful northern getaway contrasting with the familiar noises and hustle-bustle nature of Minneapolis, us city girls aren't quite used to the wildlife here. Wolf spiders lurk in the shadowy corners of our cabins, bears have been known to wander the paths, and I even pulled a leech off of my foot today, a traumatic experience I still shudder to think of. In all seriousness, everyone is excited to be here, get to know new team members, and reconnect after the summer months. Only fun awaits as we embark on our annual Ely adventures!

Coming into the season, one area of the Gopher defense that
seemed to be the most solid was the linebacking corps. With numerous experienced
players returning and the addition of a much-heralded transfer, linebacker was
to be the strength of the defense.

It might still be, once the Gophers get healthy at that
position. Two penciled-in starters - Mike Rallis and Keanon Cooper - have missed
practice time over the last week. Rallis has an undisclosed illness and Cooper
has been nursing a wrist injury. In addition, Aaron Hill has a hamstring issue
that leaves him as questionable for the season-opener at USC on Sept. 3.

Defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys has been happy with the progress
of this group, despite the nicks the unit has taken in the past few days.

"Besides the injury part, they have been very consistent,"
Claeys said. "If we get them all back, we'll be healthy and have a lot of
depth. There's a good group there. Gary (Tinsley) has done well. (Brendan) Beal
has done well ... (Mike) Rallis, (Keanon) Cooper. Aaron Hill has come a long way.
We have a nice group there to work with. So, I'm very pleased with their
progress since spring ball and through fall camp."

Head coach Jerry Kill said Thursday that he fully expects
Rallis and Cooper to be back at practice on Monday, when preparations for USC
begin in earnest.

Tinsley has been running with the first unit through much of
fall camp at the middle linebacker position. He said Claeys and linebackers
coach Bill Miller have been doing a good job of preparing everyone at the
position.

"We're all in the film room, learning," Tinsley said. "The coaches
are breaking it down for everybody. So when they come out, everybody is
confident and we're making sure we communicate with each other. I think we'll
be good."

For the final 10 days before Golden Gopher Football opens the 2011
season against the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Sept. 3,
GopherSports.com will feature a new video vignette highlighting the
matchup between these two storied programs.

With eight days to go until Sept. 3, we have another blast from the past: The Sept. 21, 1968 game at Memorial Stadium between the No. 16 Gophers and the second-ranked Trojans. Receiving a kickoff while trailing 16-13 with 7:56 remaining in the second half, the Gophers George Kemp toss a cross-field lateral to senior John Wintermute, who scrambled 83 yard for the score to give Minnesota a 20-16 lead.

"It was a perfect storm moment," Kemp said later. "The play only took a few seconds. But, sometimes to me, it feels like it took 20.''

Running back O.J. Simpson, who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy that year, would soon take over, scoring the final two of his four touchdowns on the day to give USC an eventual 29-20 win. But Wintermute's return is one of the more memorable plays in the storied history of the two programs.

That's Day 8 in our Countdown to USC -- check back tomorrow for number 7 on our list. Saturday's Coming!

Coming of a home opener where the University of Minnesota women's soccer team controlled nearly all facets of the game, head coach Mikki Denney Wright and her squad hop back on the road for a pair of matches in California. The Golden Gophers open up their West Coast road trip Friday night against San Diego State at 6 p.m. (CST) at the SDSU Sports Deck.

August
25th, 2011, all the compliance meetings, physicals, and preparations
are a thing of the past. Today Gopher Cross Country 2011 began as we headed off
to the northland of Nevis at Belle Shores Resort on Lake Belle Taine. For a few
of us guys, we headed out at 7 a.m. for a short morning run on campus before
finishing packing our gear up. Then at 9 a.m., our 5 car caravan headed out of
the city on I-94. After making a short pit stop at Bohunks Sandwiches in Little
Falls, we continued on to Nevis and arrived a little after 1 p.m.. The vans were
unpacked, cabin assignments handed out, and after our homes for the next week
were inspected and rooms claimed, we gathered on the beach for instructions and
greetings from the owners, Wayne and Erna Johnson.

For the next hour and half or so the
front lawn was full of Frisbee and football action along with an intense
horseshoe competition between the team of Pieter Gagnon and Paul Hilsen, and
Hassan Mead and me. Unfortunately, Hassy and I were unable to match the fantastic
play of Mr. Gadgets (Gagnon) and Mr. Katy Perry (Hilsen)...both engineer majors. We believe their
engineering background was a reason for their remarkable tosses and bounces.
Bunch (Coach Plaz's sister) prepared a delicious light lunch for everyone,
which then led everyone to retreat to their respective cabins for a short nap
before our run at 4:30.

At
4:30, we drove to Paul Bunyan State Forest where we ran on a forest road for a
comfortable 55 to 65 minutes depending on how each person was feeling. After
completing some strides, we headed back to Belle Shores where we had some group
core and the freshman learned what CC Abs all entailed. The lake was the place
to go next to cool off and shower up out at the raft.

Dinner time arrived as
Bunch prepared a Beef Stew along with rice, salad, dinner rolls, and
milk...perfect after a good day of training and fun. For the next hour and a
half, another round of Frisbee, football, horseshoes, and even a little whiffle
ball occurred before we headed to the grocery store for individual snacks. Most
of the guys hit the sack once arriving back to the resort to get some good rest
before our 8 a.m. run. Day 1 Complete!

Today, in the Gopher Preseason Camp Blog we take a look at who
quarterback MarQueis Gray will be throwing the ball to this season.

Everyone involved with Gopher football - coaches, players,
fans, opponents - they all know who senior wide receiver Da'Jon McKnight is. But
what many people in those groups may not know is who else the Gophers will be
able to target at wide receiver when they put the ball in the air.

Answering that question has been a real focus throughout
preseason camp, according to offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover.

"One of the great things about camp is that we've been able
to find a few guys that there were some question marks on, guys that we feel
like have really done a nice job and stepped up," Limegrover said.

McKnight, a member of the Biletnikoff Award watch list, is a
proven quantity. Brandon Green has had some time off here and there with a sore
knee. That has given a handful of receivers the opportunity to take advantage
of some extra reps show their wares for the coaching staff.

"One guy that comes to mind is Victor Keise," Limegrover
said. "Malcolm Moulton is a guy that has really done a great job learning a lot
of different things at different positions. He gives us a lot of versatility.
Marcus Jones continues to do all the little things from a guy we feel we can
move around and get into some spots, get the football and make some plays."

But the wide receivers aren't the only weapons in the
Gophers' aerial arsenal. Minnesota has a Mackey Award candidate in Eric Lair,
who ranked No. 2 among Big Ten tight ends in receptions last season. He's one
of four players at that position who Limegrover sees contributing this season.

Lair and Collin McGarry give the Gophers a real nice one-two punch from the tight end position.

The
2011 edition of Golden Gopher Women's Cross Country has arrived! Today the squad reported for a long day of activities gearing up for the start of the season.
Head coach Gary Wilson welcomed 56 student-athletes on Thursday.

The day
consisted of physicals, equipment being issued, meetings with compliance
officials, academics and rounded out the day with a team dinner.

Tomorrow
the Gophers' travel will travel to Ely, MN to train for a week at Camp Voyageur. Through out the teams week of training, the captains will have blogs posted to Gophersports.com so that fans and family can be kept in the loop of things.

For the final 10 days before Golden Gopher Football opens the 2011 season against the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Sept. 3, GopherSports.com will feature a new video vignette highlighting the matchup between these two storied programs.

On Day 9 of our countdown, we ask Los Angeles-area native and Gopher sophomore cornerback Brock Vereen on what it will be like to go back home and play the Trojans in front of family and friends.

That's Day 9 in our Countdown to USC -- check back tomorrow for number 8 on our list. Saturday's Coming!

Head coach Jerry Kill got a rousing rendition of "Happy
Birthday To You" sung to him by his team bright and early Wednesday morning on the
outdoor practice fields at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex. His 50th
birthday was also celebrated in the office with plenty of decorations, plenty
of sweetsand a nice bouquet of flowers and treats from his wife, Rebecca.

So, what were Coach Kill's big birthday plans for his
evening after Wednesday's second practice?

"Well, I've got to go watch film here at 7:15," Kill said,
noting that for as long as he can remember his birthday coincided with football
practices and watching film.

I'm not sure what Coach Kill thought about his team's
singing ability. But I do know he was pretty pleased with what he got out of
his team after their a cappella effort.

"This morning went well," Kill said. "We shortened them up
this morning and went 12 or 13 periods and then 16 (this afternoon). We were
able to do some things. We started preparing for USC. I thought practice went well.
We've got some tired bodies and so forth, but everybody does. We'll practice
tomorrow and then give them some time to get their legs underneath them and get
ready to play."

Senior defensive tackle Brandon Kirksey said more and more
game preparation means less banging on each other and the pace slowing down
just a bit during workouts.

The 2011 edition of Golden Gopher Cross Country has arrived! Today the men's team reported for a long day of activities gearing up for the start of the season. Head coach Steve Plasencia welcomed 21 student-athletes on Wednesday.

The day consisted of physicals, equipment being issued, meetings with compliance officials, academics and each member of the team got a picture taken for the media.

To finish up the day the group went through a light workout in the area. Tomorrow the Gophers' travel to Nevis, MN to train for a week on Lake Belle Taine. The Maroon and Gold will be training twice a day for a week. While up in Nevis, members of the squad will have blogs posted to Gophersports.com.

For the final 10 days before Golden Gopher Football opens the 2011 season against the USC Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Sept. 3, GopherSports.com will feature a new video vignette highlighting the matchup between these two storied programs. These might include insight from current and former players and coaches, highlights from previous battles and even insight from fans looking forward to the start of the Jerry Kill era.

Today's feature is a highlight from the Gophers 1955 25-19 win over the Trojans on Oct. 29, 1955.

1955 would be considered a down season for Golden Gopher football. A year removed from finishing 7-2 and ranked 20th in the nation's final poll, Murray Warmath's team opened the season 1-4 as they welcomed 10th-ranked USC into town.

Already up 12-6 in the third quarter, amid a snow/sleet mix and temperatures hovering in the mid-30s, Gopher quarterback Don Swanson called his own number and scampered 65 yards for the touchdown. You can read more about that game by clicking here.

That's Day 10 in our Countdown to USC -- check back tomorrow for #9 on our list. Saturday's Coming!

Tuesday afternoon's weather was the hottest, most humid day
the Gophers have encountered during preseason camp. The Gophers have been
working day in and day out for more than two weeks. They're in "the grind,"
according to head coach Jerry Kill.

With all of those factors working against them, tempers are
getting short, minds and bodies are fatigued. So, why on earth would Coach Kill
change Wednesday's schedule from one afternoon practice to a two-a-day, with
one session in the morning and one in the afternoon? Surely the coach saw
something he didn't like on Tuesday or feels the need to discipline them for
something, right? Wrong.

He told the team afterward that they will be two shorter
workouts than one longer one, so he can start working toward getting their legs
fresh. He also believes it will allow them to get a few more looks at some of
the players they need to make decisions about in regard to their ability to
play in the season-opener Sept. 3 at USC.

"That's not punishment for the kids," Kill said of Wednesday's
schedule change. "It's more repetition for some people that we need to
see."

Following Wednesday, the Gophers will practice Thursday and
then spend Friday morning at TCF Bank Stadium for a game preparation-type of
walk through. The plan will then be to give them Saturday and Sunday to get off
their feet and get fresh leading into game week.

"We've got to get their legs back and get some guys healthy,"
Kill said. "Then we'll go full-fledged into game plan on Monday. This time of
year, when you're coming out of camp, you've got some kids that are banged and you
want to try to get everybody healed up by Monday."

While Kill said the Gophers will be fully focused on the game
plan for USC on Monday, the Gophers have already turned a bit of a corner in
camp over the last two days. They started working on some of what they will see
out of the Trojans Monday and Tuesday.

"We took the last 25 or 30 minutes and we strictly worked on
what USC does on both sides of the ball," Kill said. "We did a little bit of
that in the kicking game on Monday. So, we're starting to turn our way (toward
USC)."

Notes:

>Wednesday is Coach Kill's 50th birthday. Or
is it? "There's a lot of rumors about that," Kill told the media member who
asked about his birthday. "I'm kind of like Sid (Hartman), I might be 60. I may
be 40. Who knows? There are rumors I might have a birthday tomorrow, but they
may be wrong. I try to forget those things."

>Kill spoke to a group of boosters who were being hosted
by the Golden Gopher Fund after practice Tuesday evening.

>The exact kickoff time for next Saturday's game at USC
has been set for 12:36 p.m. Pacific Time.

The 2011 Golden Gophers are not necessarily a senior-laden
team. But the defensive backfield is one area of the team that will have good
senior leadership.

Sixth-year senior Kim Royston has returned at safety after missing
last season with a broken leg. Senior Shady Salamon, who started two games at
running back as a true freshman, has emerged at safety as well. Meanwhile, one
cornerback spot will most likely be held down by senior Troy Stoudermire.

That experience will come in handy when it comes to the
mentality of being a defensive back, according to defensive coordinator Tracy
Claeys.

"It's probably the toughest job (on the defense)," Claeys
said. "You're having to cover some great athletes in space. They just gotta
remember, not everybody has a great day back there. Usually the best ones have
a short memory. So far, it seems like most of them handle the short memory
pretty good. The play's over and they seem to let it go and come back. That's
the important thing, because you're going to have a few bad plays back there
with the people you have to cover."

The unquestioned leader of the defensive backfield is
Royston. According to Claeys, the former Cretin-Derham Hall standout and former
Gopher captain has grabbed hold of the leadership role.

"Kim (Royston) has done a great job of getting them on the straight
and narrow," Claeys said. "That position takes a lot of experience, because
they're the quarterbacks back there. They've got to get everybody lined up and make
sure they communicate. (Kim's) age and maturity is a huge plus. Hopefully the
other kids will learn from him, so when he's done playing they can continue those
same things."

While Royston is the leader, Stoudermire may be the best
athlete in the secondary. The converted wide receiver and record-setting kick
returner knows there are expectations on him coming into his final year for the
Gophers.

"Switching over to defense last year at the end of the
season, I made some plays," Stoudermire said. "But this year, I've been going
really hard and focusing really hard. I've got the defense down. (Secondary)
coach (Jay) Sawvel has been doing a great job of getting me one-on-one focus on
the playbook."

Claeys said Stoudermire is continuing to develop. Claeys
said he has been impressed with Stoudermire's work ethic since the new coaching
staff arrived at Minnesota.

Head football coach Jerry Kill has made many friends through
his 29 years in the coaching profession. When one of those friends is a Marine
who served in Force Recon, the opportunity to have that man speak to his team
is one Coach Kill can't pass up.

During his time at Northern Illinois, Coach Kill got to know
Lynn Lowder through a mutual friend. Lowder was a Marine for 16 years and was
in Force Recon, which is the special operations arm of the Marines. As Lowder
put it, his unit was the equivalent to the Navy SEALs and Army Special Forces.
Lowder gives motivational/inspirational talks to football teams, Marines and
others. He made the trip to the Twin Cities and spoke with the Gophers last Friday.

"I got into the special operations side of the United States
Marine Corps, where you work in small teams and cohesion is critical," Lowder
said. "So many of the lessons you learn in combat have direct applicability in
life and so much of what you do in football has direct applicability to what you
do in the military and in combat. There are a lot of parallels."

After spending time talking to groups of football players,
Lowder said he determined that the message he can deliver is even more
impactful on today's young man.

"Young men today, maybe more than other generations in the
past, need male mentoring," Lowder said. "(They need) somebody who can
accelerate that learning curve. It's a chance to draw on some experience ... football,
the Marine Corps, combat and what that all means in terms of the importance of
character on and off the football field and building a quality life. That's the
focus of the talks I give to these young men, both in the Marine Corps and
around the football world a little bit."

Lowder said he wasn't sure if his message sunk in with the Golden Gophers. But he did like what he saw in his short visit with the team.

After a tough loss to No. 5/6 Maryland on Friday night, the University of Minnesota women's soccer team returns to Elizabeth Lyle Robbie (ELR) Stadium on Sunday afternoon for its home opener versus South Dakota State.

Minnesota (0-1) is coming off a strong defensive effort against Maryland, which ended in a 1-0 defeat, but head coach Mikki Denney Wright and company look to bounce back against the Jackrabbits (0-1) and get one in the win column. Historically, the Gophers have been good at rebounding after losing the first match of the season by going 7-1-0 with five shutouts in those instances with the lone 0-2 start coming in 2007.

The Golden Gophers have been remarkable in home openers since 1993 when the program began. Minnesota hoists a home opener record of 13-3-2 for its now 19-year history while Denney Wright is 5-1-1 in her squad's first home matches of each season. In 13 of those 18 home openers, the Maroon and Gold have shutout their opponent.

The Gophers aren't just lethal in home openers, but they are a force to be reckoned with in all home matches. The Maroon and Gold have posted an impressive 27-5-2 record for all home matches in the past three seasons combined.

Scouting South Dakota StateThe Jackrabbits come to the Twin Cities after losing a well fought 1-0 battle against Creighton on Friday.

SDSU returns seven starters to the pitch from a squad that finished third in The Summit League and posted an overall record of 11-3-5. This season the Jacks have been selected to finish second behind conference favorite North Dakota State.

South Dakota State is coached by Lang Wedemeyer, who has been with the Jackrabbits for the past 11 seasons. Wedemeyer began the soccer program in 2000 and has guided them to one NCAA Tournament appearance (2008).

The Jackrabbits are led on the field by senior Kayla Braffet, who tallied 13 points last season (five goals and three assists). Elisa Stamatakis, who recorded 60 saves last season and had a goal allowed average of 0.88, will start in goal for SDSU.

The SeriesThe cross-border foes have met six times in the past with the Golden Gophers leading the all-time series at 5-0-1. SDSU has only garnered two goals combined in all the contests while Minnesota has acquired 12. The last matchup between the two teams was August 21, 2009 when the Gophers pulled out a decisive 4-0 win at ELR Stadium.

On a beautiful morning in the Twin Cities, more than 1,000 fans
filed into TCF Bank Stadium to watch their Golden Gophers scrimmage Saturday.
The crowd was particularly impressive, considering this is one of the last
couple weekends of the summer for people to take a vacation, head up to the
cabin, etc. before school starts.

Head coach Jerry Kill was very appreciative of the fans who
were there to support the team.

Kill said he is often so focused even during a practice
session or scrimmage that he doesn't notice much with regard to the crowd, etc.
But he said he did notice one particular loud ovation from the Gopher faithful
today.

"I gotta be honest, I get locked in to what I'm doing and I
don't hear anything," Kill said. "I don't know if that's good or bad. The only
thing I did hear ... there was a roar when we punted the football. I don't know
if that's good or bad either. I don't really want to punt if we didn't have to.

"The people of Minnesota have been really good to Coach
Kill," the head coach added. "They've been great to the football program for a
lot of years. We've got to get a football program that represents them. We're
still trying to do that. We haven't gotten that done yet. But we're working on
it and I think they appreciate us working on it."

After a two-hour weather delay, the teams have now taken the field and will play! They will at 30 minutes to warm up, so we are looking at a kickoff around 7:07 CST. Here is a little information about tonight's match between the No. 22 Golden Gophers and the No. 5/6 Maryland Terrapins.

The wait for the 2011 season is over for head coach Mikki Denney Wright and her No. 22-ranked squad as they travel to College Park, Md. on Friday to face the No. 6-ranked Maryland for its season opener at Ludwig Field. The Golden Gophers begin its season on the road for the second-straight year after facing the 2010 National Champion Notre Dame on its home turf.

The Gophers are coming off one of its best seasons to date after they reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the second time in the program's now 19-year history. Denney Wright and company had its storybook season come to an end on its home field when Georgetown scored a late goal to win 1-0. Minnesota finished the 2010 season with a record of 14-6-3 and ranked 16th in the final national polls.

Maryland is coming off one of its program's best seasons where it finished ranked in the nation's Top 10 and reached the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. The Terrapins had its postseason run halted by Georgetown in the second round after losing on penalty kicks. Maryland returns eight starters from last year's battle-tested squad, and it enters the season ranked No. 6 in the NSCAA preseason poll, which is its highest preseason ranking the program has ever received.

The Terps are coached by Brian Pensley, who was honored last season as the Soccer America National Coach of the Year for posting an 18-2-3 record. Pensley and his team showcased one of the nation's top scoring offenses last season where the Terrapins averaged 2.30 goals per game, which ranked them 12th in the nation.

Right now, we are in a weather delay here in College Park, Md. due to an abundance of lightning in the area. The coaches are meeting with the refs right now to determine if we can get this game in before it gets too late. More updates to follow.

One day after reaching the halfway mark of the 2011
preseason camp, the University of Minnesota football team was back on the practice
field for the fourth of five scheduled two-a-day sessions Friday.

The Gophers practiced in shells (helmets and shoulder pads) this
morning and in shorts, jerseys and helmets this afternoon. Both sessions were
heavy on learning. But that doesn't mean they were light on intensity. During the
morning session, head coach Jerry Kill got after numerous players/position
groups. Within a five-minute span this morning, Coach Kill got all over both the
wide receivers and the quarterbacks for a lack of hustle.

But in true Coach Kill fashion, just as quickly he was praising
the efforts of those two groups after his messages were received.

"This morning, we had a very fast-paced practice," Kill said.
"We don't understand the little things right now. Right now, we'll get eight or
nine guys doing the right thing and two or three maybe doing the wrong thing.
Football is a team game and everybody needs to do their job. The only way you
can do your job is to focus in on every play. Football comes down to 11 or 12
plays a game, whether you win or lose it, and it's usually a mental error. We
really locked in. We need to get some of that cut down as you get closer. That's
the emphasis we're trying to make."

Intensity on the practice field is nothing new for Coach
Kill. But he told his team there was an extra sense of urgency Friday as the team
heads into a Saturday scrimmage that Kill said will be pivotal for a number of Gophers
in regard to where they fit in on the team at this point.

The wait for the 2011 season is over for head coach Mikki Denney Wright and her No. 22-ranked squad as they travel to College Park, Md. on Friday to face the No. 6-ranked Maryland for its season opener at Ludwig Field. The Golden Gophers begin its season on the road for the second-straight year after facing the 2010 National Champion Notre Dame on its home turf.

The Gophers are coming off one of its best seasons to date after they reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the second time in the program's now 19-year history. Denney Wright and company had its storybook season come to an end on its home field when Georgetown scored a late goal to win 1-0. Minnesota finished the 2010 season with a record of 14-6-3 and ranked 16th in the final national polls.

Maryland is coming off one of its program's best seasons where it finished ranked in the nation's Top 10 and reached the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. The Terrapins had its postseason run halted by Georgetown in the second round after losing on penalty kicks. Maryland returns eight starters from last year's battle-tested squad, and it enters the season ranked No. 6 in the NSCAA preseason poll, which is its highest preseason ranking the program has ever received.

The Terps are coached by Brian Pensley, who was honored last season as the Soccer America National Coach of the Year for posting an 18-2-3 record. Pensley and his team showcased one of the nation's top scoring offenses last season where the Terrapins averaged 2.30 goals per game, which ranked them 12th in the nation.

Experience will most likely win out when it comes to a
starting running back for the Golden Gophers this season. After all, of the five
running backs on the roster, there is one senior and four freshmen.

Duane Bennett is that lone senior and he's in his fifth year
in the program. He has 360 career carries for 1,487 yards and 14 rushing
touchdowns. Bennett has added 79 career receptions for 783 yards and five
scores. Of the remainder of the running backs, there are three red-shirt
freshmen and a true freshmen.

In addition to all that experience, Bennett has become a
team leader. Even better than his leadership, says offensive coordinator Matt
Limegrover, is Bennett's willingness to mentor the youngsters in his position
group.

"Duane is practically an assistant coach out there,"
Limegrover said. "He's been here for about 15 years, I think. You've got to
love his energy ... it's well-placed, it's well-timed. He'sa positive kid. He's becoming that voice of
the offense. He's not going to accept anything less from his teammates. He's
going to get after somebody. He's going to make sure everybody's towing the
line. With those young running backs ... it's him and a bunch of babies. He's
done a great job of really bringing those guys along."

Red-shirt freshmen Donnell Kirkwood, Lamonte Edwards and
Devon Wright, along with true freshman David Cobb, are all benefitting from
Bennett's knowledge. Bennett said he enjoys working with the youngsters. His
goal is to leave the running back position better for his being here.

"Being able to get those guys to really learn the offense,
learn how to work, learn how to do things the right way ... it has been an honor
to be able to have these guys," Bennett said. "They have such tremendous
talent. Being able to coach those guys on the little things to make them better
in the long run, I've had a lot of fun. They are continuing to educate
themselves every day. So when they come in next year, they are going to be 10
times better than what they were this year."

If coaching up the guys who are trying to take carries away
from him isn't proof enough, Bennett makes it very clear that he is the
ultimate team guy. He knows he will probably play a significant role on this
team. But he hasn't let that go to his head. All he wants to do is win games.

It's a time-honored axiom in football. Games are won and
lost in the trenches. We've covered the defensive line here in the camp blog,
so today, we're going to take a look at the other side of the ball and focus on
the big nasties on the offensive line.

The Golden Gophers ranked 86th in the nation in
rushing offense last year, averaging just 135.3 yards per game. You can bet
head coach Jerry Kill and offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Matt
Limegrover aren't going to be happy with a number like that in 2011. After all,
the Northern Illinois offense they led in 2010 racked up more than 260 yards
per game and ranked No. 7 in the nation in that category. The Huskies were in the
top 20 in rushing each of the past two seasons and were No. 37 the previous
season. By comparison, Minnesota hasn't ranked better than No. 48 in the same
span.

Team rushing offense and protecting the quarterback are two
of the more simple ways to judge an offensive line. While the Gophers haven't
had a wildly successful offensive line for a few years, they do have two things
going for them coming into 2011, according to Limegrover - experience and
depth.

The Gophers have two full complements of offensive linemen
who Limegrover says he's comfortable with and three of those guys are five-year
veterans of college football.

"The thing I'm most happy about is we're nine, 10, 11 strong
with guys who could go out there and play for us against USC," Limegrover said.
"Now, my job is to figure out which five and how those pieces fit. They've been
great to work with. They love learning. They're good, football-smart kids. Any
time you have that, you feel like 'OK, I can put something together as a coach
that's going to be what we can win games with.'"

That depth has been important early in camp. A handful of
offensive linemen have been in and out of the rotation with injuries. Coach
Kill said he's been impressed with how the group has handled that adversity.

"We've got a lot of guys out," Kill said. "We've thrown
whoever's in there and they just keep playing."

"Our three fifth-year seniors have all done a great job, not
only on the field but leading the younger guys," Limegrover continued. "Ryan
Wynn, Ryan Orton and Chris Bunders ... those guys have been great in the meeting
room, great out here on the field. They have a good idea of what we're trying
to accomplish overall, as far as effort and getting better every day."

It's a bit of a mutual admiration society from the offensive
linemen as well, according to the aforementioned Bunders.

Last week, Golden Gopher head coach Jerry Kill referenced preseason
games in the NFL and the lack thereof in college football.

"Our preseason game is USC," Kill said.

While college football teams don't play preseason games,
Tuesday morning's scrimmage at TCF Bank Stadium was the next-closest thing for
the Gophers. Preseason games in the National Football League are used to help
make personnel decisions and to clean up execution before the games start
counting in the win-loss column. Much of the same could be said for the Gophers'
scrimmages.

Tuesday's first scrimmage of fall camp had its share of
mistakes. But that's what practice is for, according to Kill.

"I don't think I've tolerated mistakes very well," Kill
said, referencing the first 10 practices of the fall and the 15 sessions back
during the spring. "Nobody does. We're not playing with 25 juniors and seniors.
We're playing with a lot of young people. They're going to make (mistakes). We've
got to just make sure they don't continue to make them.

"And if we're going to make them, I'd rather do it on
Tuesday afternoon on the 10th practice than on game day," Kill said.
"So you train them. We'll show them what they did wrong and point it out to
them. Hopefully they'll get it corrected. If they don't get it corrected and
they keep making the same mistakes, it's hard to play that guy."

In addition to a handful of mistakes, there were a few
injuries which put a bit of a damper on the enthusiasm of the first scrimmage
of fall camp. But in typical Coach Kill fashion, he brought it all back to
building the team.

"Our starting center (Ryan Wynn) got hurt right off the bat,"
Kill said. "So you're underneath somebody different and I think it took a
little while (for the offense) to get into rhythm. But I've been doing this for
29 years and every time you have a first scrimmage ... that's pretty much how it
goes.

"We had a few guys get banged," Kill continued. "When you get
a few key players hurt, it's probably good in camp for the next guy to have to
step in. MarQueis (Gray) had to get underneath another center ... and it took a little
while for him to get used to it. But that's going to happen. You've got to be
ready for those kinds of things."

Following Monday morning's workout, Gopher Football head
coach Jerry Kill reminded his players that this was a very important week.
There are two scrimmages (Tuesday and Saturday) this week. Many thoughts about
who will be playing and where they will play will begin to be formed this week.

Kill told the group that although they may get tired, they
need to keep their mental focus this week.

Despite that, it was a good day of work with a good-natured
attitude from the head coach on down through the players Monday.

Case in point ... it wasn't readily apparent whether Coach
Kill knew one of his top linebackers was lurking in the background of Monday
evening's post-practice interview session. But when the Star-Tribune's Phil
Miller asked if Coach Kill would "agree that Sam linebacker is the weakness of
the defense," someone nodded slightly toward the long-haired linebacker just a
bit and tipped Kill off.

Coach Kill then looked at Rallis ... paused ever so slightly
and then with a sly smile, he disagreed with Miller's question.

"Well, I gotta be honest with you ... at Sam linebacker, we're
pretty darn good," Kill said. "I feel good about that. I don't say that very
often. I think, not only does the guy standing back there need to get a haircut
... but the guys working with, behind him and so forth ... linebacking-wise, I
think there are some guys doing some good things right now."

Well, that was the strangest team picture day I've ever
attended. But it is most likely the wave of the future.

The Gophers hired Lifetouch to handle their team photos once
again this year. It was the first year that the company has brought a new
technology to the U of M campus for team and group photos. This new technology
basically puts out a team and/or group photo without actually taking a photo of
the entire group.

Here's how it works: High-tech cameras take head-to-toe
digital images of each individual. Each individual's name is tagged in the
software. An automated program then drops each person who belongs in each group
or team photo in automatically. Some editing is done on the back end to make it
look sharp... and voila! A team photo or a group photo of the coaching staff, the
equipment staff, etc. is the finished product.

We're supposed to get the finished images back in about a
week-and-a-half for use in the football game program. I'll be very interested
to see the finished product.

All together, the process took less than two hours. The best
thing for the coaches, players and staff is they didn't have to stand out in
the hot sun in the stadium for 30 minutes while the photographers yell things
like "Hey, number 8! Move to your left one step. No, back to the right a half
step. OK, perfect!" Those who were involved in the shoot spent roughly one
minute in front of the cameras indoors at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex indoor
practice facility and then they were done.

In addition to the team/group photos, a few other things
were taking place in conjunction with Photo Day. Public Service Announcements
that air in the stadium on game days with student-athletes in them were being
shot, as were some interviews for Coach Kill's television show. There was also
some video work being done for the team introduction video to be used on the
big screen on game days.

I was personally involved in something cool, too. Gopher
defensive lineman Curran Delaney was taking part in a photo shoot for ESPN The
Magazine. Delaney was in the Marines prior to attending the University of Minnesota and served as a sniper. ESPN The
Magazine will be profiling him as part of a story focusing on athletes who have
served in the military. The magazine sent a photographer to Minneapolis today
to get images of Delaney for that story, which will tie into the 10th
anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks .

Keep an eye out for that issue of ESPN The Magazine next
month. I've seen the photos and they are very cool! I have some shots of the
setup for the photo shoot in the video above and the photo gallery below.

Notes:

>Sunday was a day off from practice for the Gophers.

>The team will be back at it with a two-a-day session
Monday at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex. Those practices are slated for 8:50 a.m.
and 4:50 p.m. and are once again open to the public.

The Gophers wrapped up their first week of the 2011 Preseason Camp with a two-a-day session Saturday at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex. The second of the two practices was held in the late afternoon/early evening.

Head coach Jerry Kill's squad practiced for a little more than 1 1/2 hours in gorgeous weather. A little rain in the area even stayed off to the east and created a nice rainbow for more than 200 fans who were in attendance.

Those fans were treated to a good deal of live scrimmage work. There were some oooh's and aaah's from the crowd during the seven-on-seven drills, when quarterbacks MarQueis Gray and Max Shortell each hooked up with wide receivers for long gains.

While the offense had the upper hand in the seven-on-seven's, it was the defense that shined in the scrimmage at the end of practice.

"The defense made some great plays," Gray said. "The offense just had a lack of focus. That's all. Once we get that squared away, then everyone's on the same page and trusting each other and we'll be doing some great things."

Sunday will mark the Gophers' first day off from practice during this year's camp. They won't be completely away from football, however. The team will have meetings, before gathering in the early afternoon for a team photo. This session is closed to the public.

First-year University of Minnesota head football coach Jerry
Kill has a team to build. He wants his Golden Gophers to rely on each other,
care about the man next to him more than he cares about himself, have a
team-first attitude, be mentally tough.

What team fits the above descripton
better than the United States Navy SEALs? So, Coach Kill and Director of Player Personnel Adam
Clark recruited a pair of gentlemen from the Navy SEALs to speak with the
Gophers after Friday night's team meal.

Dave Morrison was a Captain and Mark Courrier was a Special
Warfare Operator Master Chief for the SEALS. Both are now based in Norfolk, Va.
and are part of the Naval Special Warfare Recruiting Directorate. Clark
contacted them, asked them to visit Minnesota and speak to the team. Both had
powerful messages.

"I've got one question for you," Morrison asked the team. "What's
the most important thing here today? The people that walk in and out of those
glass doors every day. It doesn't matter the amount of equipment you have, the
amount of practice you do, the amount of things you have, the gear. It doesn't
matter.

"If you can't depend on the guy that's sitting or standing right
next you on the line, or holding the snap ... if you can't depend on that guy,
then you can't call yourselves a team," Morrison continued.

Full pads went on for the first time in the University of
Minnesota football team's 2011 preseason camp Friday. So, surely the intensity
was ratcheted up a notch and practice was much different than it has been for
the first four days. Right?

Not so fast, said head coach Jerry Kill after Friday's
workout.

"We haven't had full pads on, but we didn't practice any
different than we did the last three days in shells," Kill said. "We've been in
shells. The only thing we weren't in is pants. We practice exactly the same way.
Except for the last 10 minutes, we didn't change one ounce of practice and what
we do."

Kill mentioned that last 10 minutes being the one difference
in the practice. That difference came in the form of the team actually getting some
live scrimmage-type work in. Three different offensive units got to work
against three different defensive units at the end of the workout.

During that scrimmage session, the offense faced a
second-and-eight situation. If the offense recorded a first down, the offense
won and the defense did up-downs. Conversely, if the defense held, it's unit
was the winner of that go-round and the offense was doing up-downs.

Coach Kill never likes to make too many proclamations until
after he has gone inside to watch the tape. But he did see enough to know that
there were some positives and negatives on both sides of the ball.

As the camp blog looks at the Gophers by position groups throughout fall camp, we focus in on the defensive line today.

It's no secret to anyone involved with the Minnesota football program
that rushing the passer was an issue in the 2010 season. With just nine
sacks last season, the Gophers ranked last in the nation in that
category.

Senior defensive tackle Anthony Jacobs says getting to the quarterback is always at the forefront of a defensive lineman's consciousness.

"(Sacks are) always on our mind," Jacobs said after Thursday's fourth
practice of camp. "That's the one spot that we can get some glory is
defensive sacks. There's a huge emphasis on that. The players in the NFL
now, that's the one thing they were real good at is getting sacks,
putting pressure on the quarterback. So, we're all working hard to do
the same thing."

Claeys said Jacobs and senior fellow defensive tackle Brandon Kirksey have done everything asked of them so far.

"(Kirksey and Jacobs) are being great leaders right now," Claeys
said. "They had a good summer with Coach Klein. They're in great shape.
They have improved a lot since spring ball, just in what we've asked
them to do. They've lost a little bit of weight, slimmed down and have
played really hard so far."

While the defensive tackle position seems to be in good hands with
the first unit, Claeys is looking for more constant production from the
defensive end position.

Throughout the course of fall camp, the Camp Blog will endeavor to
look at each position group on the Gopher squad. We'll kick off with the
quarterbacks.

While it's only Day 3 of camp, head coach Jerry Kill
has already identified quarterback as one of the question marks for the
Gophers. It isn't hard to see who the clear-cut front-runner for the
No. 1 signal-caller job is - junior Marqueis Gray is poised to take hold of the reins of Matt Limegrover's offense.

"(MarQueis) is an amazing story,"head coach Jerry Kill said after practice Wednesday. More of that quote in a moment.

But there are even a few question marks when it comes to Gray,
according to his head coach. He hasn't been a full-time starting
quarterback since high school and Kill wants to see how his guy handles
live, game action in a hostile environment.

The rest of Kill's comment after he called Gray an amazing story came
after a brief pause ... "if he continues to go through the growth spurt.
You've got to play on Saturday's before you evaluate anybody. We don't
get preseason games like the National Football League. Our preseason is ...
we gotta go to USC. Until he gets game experience, he'll learn and
he'll have to be patient. He's gotta continue to progress."

Where it sounds like Coach Kill may have to be patient is when it comes to figuring out who will play behind Gray.

The Big Ten Network's studio team of Dave Revsine, Gerry Dinardo and
Howard Griffith rolled into the Twin Cities Tuesday for their annual
preseason tour of each Big Ten campus.

It was just the second day of practice for the Gophers. While head coach Jerry Kill
would have liked to show the fans in attendance and the Big Ten Network
folks a faster pace to practice, the Gophers just haven't progressed to
that point in Kill's program yet.

"I don't think we can speed up because we've only had 17 practices
with a group of kids," Kill said. "It isn't like we've had veterans for
20 years, 15 and10 years. We've had 17 practices with about 30 new faces
out there. We've got every coach working. We've got every player
working. We can't go fast right now, not as fast as we're going to two
or three years down the road."

Speaking of speed, there was apparently some discussion amongst some
of the Gophers as to which player was the fastest. A member of the media
posed that question to Coach Kill. The head coach may as well have
said, "Who's the fastest? Who cares?"

What he really said was: "I'm not worried about it. I don't care as long as they play on the field."

Monday's first day of the 2011 brought
a large contingent of the Twin Cities media out to see the team
practice and talk to the coaches and players after the workout. Below is
a look at some of yesterday's media coverage of the Golden Gophers:

Don't forget Tuesday's practice is
slated for 3:45 p.m. at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex and is open to the
public. The Gophers will practice in helmets, jerseys and shorts once
again today.-By Andy Seeley, Associate Director of Athletic Communications

Day 1 of fall camp for the University of Minnesota football team is
in the books. It was the first-ever fall practice for head coach Jerry Kill, who is preparing his first Gopher team for its season-opener Sept. 3 at USC.

Kill said Monday's practice session went well. But he also made sure
to mention that the pace still wasn't what he wants it to eventually be.

Despite that, the Gophers felt it was a productive practice with two and three huddles working at a time.

"You get a lot of rep(etition)s," junior linebacker Mike Rallis
said of the way Kill and his staff run practice. "That's really the key
to football. You've got to get the repetitions down. Overall, I think
it was an extremely productive practice."

While Coach Kill saw some good things also, he cautioned that it was just the first day.

"I thought it went pretty good," Kill said following the practice
session. "We had a lot of people out there working. We had a bunch of
kids that I've never had a chance to see and another group that we've
only seen for 15 days. So there's a lot of learning processes to be
made.

"I thought some guys looked quicker and faster," Kill continued. "But
you always do on the first day. This is one day. Anybody can do
something in one day. You've got to do it over a period of time."

Kill said he was just happy to have an opportunity to actually do some coaching.

"I got to be out there and be a ball coach, which I enjoy doing,"
Kill said. "I don't get a chance to do it very often. Going out there
and working with kids, I enjoy doing that. Seeing kids get better and
see how they respond ... that's a good thing. I enjoy that process."

The Golden Gophers held an orientation session as a precursor
preseason camp Sunday afternoon at TCF Bank Stadium and the
Gibson-Nagurski Complex. As with any meeting of this sort, lots of
talking heads were in front of the Gophers Sunday.

Chief among those speakers was new University of Minnesota President
Dr. Eric Kaler, who explained to the Gophers how important they are to
the school.

"You are critically important to the image we put forth to the
community," Kaler told them. "We're invested in your success. I'm here
to tell you that academically, there's nothing more important to me than
you being able to make progress toward a degree and toward being a
successful human being."

Kaler also had good things to say about Coach Kill.

"You are blessed because of the addition of Coach Kill and his staff
at the University of Minnesota," Kaler said. "Most of you are returning
from a season last year that was not all that we would want to have in
Gopher Football. I'm convinced that Coach Kill and his team are going to
be able to move this program forward in every way that matters. I'm
going to be your biggest fan."

There is a famous story about legendary basketball coach John Wooden
and the first thing he did with new players. He taught them how to put
their socks and shoes on and how to tie their shoes.

Former Bruin and NBA great Bill Walton said doing that properly would
be "everything we would need to know for the rest of our lives." It was
important for Wooden to not only tell his players what he expected of
them and how he expected them to handle themselves, down to the smallest
detail of tying their shoes.

"Today's an educational system," Kill said. "Not so much talking at
them, but talking with them to teach them what it is to be a college
football player. It's not anything new. It's just how you do it and what
you do to make sure they take something from it and learn."

Golden Gopher football players got head coach Jerry Kill's
version of that shoes/socks talk Sunday at TCF Bank Stadium. The
Gophers took part in an eight-hour orientation session and unlike many
other orientation sessions, this one included some hands-on
demonstrations. Those demonstrations included how to keep and maintain
their lockers, as well as where to be and what to do during practice
sessions.